Freight-car door



,-(No Model.)

J. CHRISTIANSEN. Freight Gar Door'.

Patented May 24, 188|.

UNiTED STAT-ns PATENT Ormea.

JOHN OHRISTIANSEN, OF ARORA, ILLINOIS.

FREIGHT-CAR DooR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 241,927, dated May 24,1881.

Application led February 7, 1881. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN CHRIsTIANsEN, a citizen of the United States,residing in Aurora, in the county of Kane and State of Illinois, haveinvented certain Improvements in Doors for Freight-Gars, of whichpthefollowing is a specification, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings, forming a part hereof.

My invention relates more especially to improvements in side and enddoors for graincars, and on that class of doors which are placedvandopen and close at the inside of the cars.

My invention is designed to meet the requirements ot' many roads whichof late have increased the laverage load of' grain-cars from what ithasheretofore been-viz., twelve to ifteen tons per car to twenty tonsper car. This increase of the average load of the car has involved theuse of a higher door to retain the grain than has heretofore beenemployed; but it has been found that by increasing the height ofpivoteddoors of existing patterns the door has been prevented fromclearing the roof of the carin moving on its pivot, and that to swingsuch a door to the required height to retain twenty tons of grain itwould be necessary to add to the height of the car.

My invention is designed to produce a door qualified to provide for suchincreased carrying capacity of a grain-car; and to this end the door isconstructed of an upper and a lower part, each operated independentlyofthe other, the upper part being loosely connected with and adapted toslide on an inclined track in such manner that the free end of said partor upper door may first be ,raised to remove it from the lateralpress-ure of the grain and the door then slid upon the track, andafterward secured in a higher horizontal plane out of contact with thecontents of the car. Other devices and combinations enter into theinvention, as hereinafter particularly described.

In the further description of my invention which follows reference ismade to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is an elevation ofaninner side of a grain-car embracing my invention. Fig. 2 is asectional plan ol' the same. Figs. 3 and 4 are vertical transversesections on lines X X and Y Y, respectively, of Fig. 1.

Similar letters of reference indicate similar parts inV all the views.

A represents the car, of which a is the floorsill and b the roof-plate.may be of any known pattern. It is here shown as pivoted at c andadapted to be opened by being swung on its pivot. Above the door B isplaced an additional or supplemental door, C, ot' a height necessary tomeet the requirements of the increased load. The door O is provided witha strap, d, which rests over and forms a loosely-jointed connection withan inclined track-rod, e, the higher end of which is fastened at e underthe roof-plate of the car. A guide-bar, f, is attached to the roof-plateand side of the ear respectively by means ot' a projecting iron, f', anda bolt, f2. Sufticient space is left between the inner side oftheguidebar f and the side of the car to receive and admit of the freemovement of the upper door. The depressed end of the inclined track-rode is secured to the guide-bar f, as shown. At the lower end of the baris afoot, f the office of which is described below.

The operation of the upper door is as follows: The door is first liftedat one end, as indicated in dotted lines, to relieve it of the pressureof the grain, when the door is easily moved endwise, the strap d slidingup the inclined track-rod c until the door assumes the position shown indotted lines at the left of Fig. 1, the lower rightl1and corner of thedoor resting on the foot f. The end of the door adjoining thedoor-openin g is now raised until the top edge of the door is broughtunder and parallel to the roof-plate, a hook, g, attached to theroof-plate being hooked in the staple g, secured on the upper edge ofthe door.

The full lines in Fig. 1 show the doors in their closed positions. Theyare kept closed by means of the swinging bar D, when situated as shownin full lines, the lower end of the bar being provided with a strap orshoe which lits over the top edge of the upper door. Before the doorscan be opened the swinging bar D must be elevated to the positionrepresented by dotted lines.

The top edge of the lower door and the bottom edge of the upperdoor-that is to say7 the engaging edges of both doors-are preferablyrabbeted, tongued and grooved, or otherwise The lower door, B, 5 5

IOO

shaped to break the joint, and thus prevent the outflow of grain frombetween the doors. This construction also aids the upper door in itssliding movements, the rabbet or groove serving as a guide. A verticalrod, laextending from the pivot ot' the lower door to the roof, andwhich is removed a sufcient distance for the purpose from theinsideofthe car, connes the right-hand end ot' the upper door and prevents itslateral movement or detachment, when closed, from the lower door.

After the upper door, (l, has been brought to its open position in themanner above described, and has, in consequence, been removed fromcontact with the lower door, the latter is free to be opened by heiligswung 011 its pivot. When in its open position the upper edge oi' thelower door rests upon the door ol' the car,

3 and the end of the door adjacent to the pivot is brought even with theedge ot' the dooropening, leaving the doorway entirely nnohstructed.

I do not claim in a ireightear a door pivoted at one end at or near itsvertical center combined with a device serving` the purposes oi' asupplemental door and :attle-bar, which device is adapted to slide in ahorizontal plane above the pivoted door, and across and from thedoor-opening; neither will the objects of my invention be attained bysuch construction. In my invention it is essential that the uppersliding door shall he attached at one end to an inclined track in amanner which will allow the other or i'ree end ot" the door to be raisedso as to remove it from the lateral pressure ot' the grain. My mode ofattaching the sliding` door to its inclined track also admits of theraising of the door after ity has reached its open position, in orderthat it may be removed clear from contact with the contents ot' the car.

It is obvious that should the supplemental door slide to its openposition in a horizontal plane it could not be removed from the lateralpressure ofthe grain,which pressure would thus prevent its free movementto its open position, and also that after it had reached such positionit could not, unless the connection with its track were in substancesuch as is herein shown, be elevated after the opening of' the door, soas to remove it from contact. with the contents of the car.

I claim as my inventionl. Thecombination, in a grain-car, ofa lower doorand upper independently-acting door, an inclined track, a looselyjointed connection between said upper door and track, and a guidebar,whereby the upper door may be raised, slid, and guided to its openposition and away from the lower door, permitting the latter to beopened independently, substantially as specilied.

2. In a freight-car, a sliding door combined with an inclined track, aguide-har, foot-piece, anda loosely-jointed device connecting said doorand inclined track, whereby the door may he slid and elevated to an openposition, substantially as specified.

3. In a freight-car, the combination oi'a sliding door and inclinedtrack, a loosely-jointed device connecting said door and track, a guide'har and means t'or securing the door when slid toits open and elevatedposition, substantially as speciiied.

4. The combination, in a i'reightcar, with lower and upperindependently-moving doors, the latter sliding to its open position uponan inclined track, ol' a pivoted locking device adapted, when the saidupper door is in its closed or depressed position, to be adjustedthereto, and thus secure or lock it and the lower door, substantially asspeciied.

In testimony whereof I have hereto subscribed my name.

JOHN CHRISTIANSEN.

Witnesses:

R. C. ALLEN, H. F. COOPER.

